open door affordable housing program

Toronto is looking to build more affordable housing, with a 50 unit townhouse development approved last week in East Toronto.

Habitat for Humanity GTA, along with Mayor John Tory and the Toronto Foundation, have approved the affordable housing development at 140 Pinery Trail. This is the first project to use a dense build form of back-to-back-stacked townhouses, featuring three, four, and five bedroom units. The housing project is set to house 50 families by 2019.

Habitat for Humanity has an affordable housing model that allows families to become homeowners while paying a no-interest mortgage. The mortgage is capped at 30 per cent of their annual housing income, and instead of contributing a down payment, the family must volunteer 500 hours towards the construction of their home and other habitat properties.

The Toronto Foundation is providing funding for 15 homes through a social impact investment. This type of investment looks to help push forward positive social supports such as affordable housing, but it is a loan. This loan will be paid back using mortgage payments once the first 15 families move in. Private donors will also contribute to the loans. The Toronto Foundation was created in 1981 and helps provide resources for individuals and families.

Other donors for the project include the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB), Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD), Right at Home Realty, Great-West Life Realty Advisors, Enbridge Gas Distribution and the Clark Family Foundation.

Habitat for Humanity GTA is a non-profit housing organization that works with families to help them obtain affordable housing. The organization has built over 300 homes in Brampton, Caledon, Toronto and the York Region since 1998, and is affiliated with Habitat for Humanity worldwide.

This affordable housing project is the first recipient of the Toronto Foundation social impact investment. The Open Door affordable housing initiative is pushing for non-profits to work together to create housing, and this project is a big win for the city. It is important to note though that it is somewhat disappointing that Toronto must lean on non-profits such as Habitat for Humanity, a non-profit that is already stretched from providing resources to dilapidated regions around the world. Toronto is clearly in dire need for affordable housing and is looking for help. On the other hand, it is a progressive step forward to see large private donors contribute to the funding. Hopefully this is a trend that continues and ultimately solves the housing crisis in the largest Canadian city.

City Council made an announcement of a 2.6 per cent budget cut that will affect all programs, including affordable housing. So what does this mean for the Open Door program and other affordable housing initiatives in the city?

When the budget cuts were presented at council Tuesday, Councillor Mike Layton put forward a motion to protect Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC), which the chair of affordable housing and Councillor Ana Bailao surprisingly voted against.

Though budget cuts are never welcome news for desperate programs like affordable housing, it isn’t as dire as it may seem. Councillor Bailao explains an alternative perspective to the budget cuts involving affordable housing that would ensure it doesn’t cut essential services, but instead would rid the system of inefficiencies.

“We weren’t discussing if anything specific was going to be cut. At community housing, we have 107 IT applications that don’t speak on each other. If we embark on an IT restructure and reduce the cost of doing things, isn’t that a good thing?” Bailao says. “There was nobody talking about cutting anything with an impact. If I can get 2.6 per cent in reduction to be more efficient, why wouldn’t I look at that?”

If the budget cuts put pressure on TCHC to make it more efficient, it could benefit the affordable housing agenda overall. The affordable housing corporation has come under fire over for their inefficiencies, long waitlists, and a lack of proper care for residents. Perhaps tightening up operations would propel TCHC into gear. Open Door, an affordable housing program and approved and amended Wednesday, attempts to address some of these concerns.

The Open Door Affordable Housing program was introduced by Councillor Bailao and Mayor John Tory in November 2015 in an attempt to meet housing targets put forth by the 10-year affordable housing plan. “The plan is for 1000 rental units and 200 ownership annually. There hasn’t been one year that we have fulfilled that goal,” Bailao says. “We know the city is trying hard and we are trying to enhance the partnership. Aside from the affordable housing program, we are saying the city is going to contribute.” Open Door streamlines building applications that have a minimum of 20 per cent affordable housing, provides government land and provides incentives such as the avoidance of building fees and permits.

Additionally, 294 new affordable housing properties were approved in council on Tuesday. Councillor Ana Bailao and other City Council members are slowly but surely making progress in the affordable housing profile though sometimes success feels limited. The recent 550 subsidies for $250 for families that have been on the waitlist for 10 years or more is a prime example of how the needs of people who require housing are not being met as much as the city would like.

“These are larger families that have been on the list for so long. Having a federal government that is talking about a federal housing strategy allows us to do a little more,” Bailao says. “They will be allowed to continue on the waiting list because we don’t believe it is enough but it is a little bit of help.” The Federal Housing Strategy that was recently launched should further help support affordable housing in Toronto.

The Federal Housing Strategy and Toronto’s Housing Summit should help to promote fresh ideas. The Summit will be put on by the City of Toronto to promote new ideas and gather stakeholders to talk about affordable housing solutions. Using sustainable building practices is an example of a possible solution to reduce costs and support the environment. “The province released their green fund for social housing so that we can get environmental and repairs benefits, and reductions in operations such as electricity. More and more social housing providers are going in that direction,” Bailao says.

It is an uphill battle for Councillor Bailao and the TCHC because of the long waitlist and lack of available affordable housing, but innovation and perseverance could bring the change that Toronto needs. Open Door is a step in the right direction, and it will be interesting to see where the budget cuts are applied.

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